My kids used to LOVE marble painting. I saw a picture of this adorable kid on Pinterest doing some GIANT marble painting. Ok, besides noticing how incredibly adorable he is, look how cool his painting is.

Source: Play Create Explore

In my class, I used square baking tins (Dollar Store people.... 4 tins=$4) and they worked great. I've seen people use boxes as well. My kids would use the paint squirt bottles (featured in a previous post), cut a piece of paper to size, drop a marble in (or 5 marbles), and go to town. Great for a center!

These marbles can be found at Walmart, Target, Hobby Lobby, etc. (the ones people put in glass vases).

I love these. Aren't they gorgeous? Perfect for framing in the house too. A couple mom's told me they did it at home using colors that went with decor. Smart.

Marble Art in my classroom:

One of the most annoying 'chores' during my first year of teaching was managing that messy paint. I had these big cups with lids and matching paintbrushes (seen below), but it was inevitable that the colors would be mixed by 'that one kid' (you know which one) and then the whole giant cup of paint was ruined. Even when they used the correct brush with the correct cup, those kiddos who did the crazy-Picasso-helicopter-arm paintings managed to still mix colors. Grrrr.

Lakeshore $12.95

Although I loved the cups and concept, it was a little more mental stress than I wanted to dedicate to paint cups. I also had some overly picky girls who refused to use pink paint that had been tainted with a speck of brown. What to do?

Squirt bottles + ice cube trays = love

I can't tell you how much I love this. I found packs of these clear squirt bottles at Target in the kitchen supply area (a lot of other stores have them as well). I bought 12 and made sure I had enough for each color (including pink, skin colors, and gray). I also labeled the outside with the color names.

You could also opt for the cheaper (and disposable) version too...

I wanted to throw in an action shot of them and of course I can't find my picture... imagine the ones below... but larger... and all filled with paint. I'm so ashamed that I had to hunt for a picture. :(

Modern Teaching Aids ~$11

This was my 'helicopter arm' kid... possibly the most hilarious child I've met.

Why I love it:

less paint wasted

kids were independent and would only squirt out a little of each color they needed... then a little more if they needed it

less 'mixing' of colors

no dried up paint if we didn't use it during the week

I only needed to get the gallon size paint bottles out when the squirt bottles got low

Ice cube trays fit perfectly into the easel rack

CHEAP!!!

only one paintbrush needed per side... they rinsed with water in between color change

Science Connection: I only left the red, yellow, blue, white, and black bottles out when we learned about colors in science. They had to learn how to make their own green, orange, purple, pink, etc. Hahaha...... such a meanie.

Search the Site:

Copyright:

This site is filled with wonderful resources from teachers and other sites. I always give credit and clickable links to the resource.

I expect you to do the same if you share an idea or printable that is from me. I don't mind you sharing my photos or links to my printables, but please be professional with them, give credit, and do not claim them as your own. If you find a downloadable document on here, you may not directly link it from your site. You MUST direct traffic to the blog post where it's contained.

The graphics (buttons & headers) and site components were designed by me. You may not copy or use them in any way, unless directly pinning to Pinterest.

Thank you for respecting my time and work. The copyright monster is watching.